Mao Zedong's Words Banned, US "Freedom of Speech" Fails

Published in Sohu
(China) on 1 April 2013
by Editorial (link to originallink to original)
Translated from by Mollie Gossage. Edited by Kyrstie Lane  .
The website for the National Center for Education Statistics, a branch of the U.S. Department of Education, recently got into some trouble. On March 22 this website’s “quote of the day” featured Mao Zedong’s famous saying: “Our attitude towards ourselves should be ‘to be satiable in learning’ and towards others ‘to be tireless in teaching.’” The National Center for Education Statistics consequently met with violent criticism. An American senator came forward and said the Department of Education must explain why it quoted the words of a “communist.” The center’s website was forced to delete Mao Zedong’s words, exchanging them for one of Lincoln’s aphorisms. The U.S. Department of Education’s deputy press secretary also publicly stated that the use of this quote was “very bad," as if to apologize.*

For a country with such an emphasis on “freedom of speech,” the U.S. cannot even tolerate a saying by Mao Zedong. This shows the stinginess of the American political system in the face of multiculturalism. It seems that those people who are constantly exposing the U.S.’ “freedom of speech” as a fraud have reason.

Any American president or celebrity’s words — even if they are the words of Gen. Douglas MacArthur, who was once at war with the Chinese army — could appear today in the Chinese media and probably run into no obstacles. But for Mao Zedong’s words to be posted on an American website raises a great disturbance. We do not intend to use this simple comparison to lead to an absolute conclusion, but this kind of comparison is indeed very interesting. We believe that for the unbiased, it may be very eye-opening.

Freedom of speech has its boundaries in every nation. We can understand the U.S. having its own boundaries. But this case of “quotation crisis,” lets us see that the U.S. is determined to maintain its deep social consistency against the backdrop of multiculturalism. American elites are not only highly vigilant about social division, but they will also quickly defend the “American consensus.”

Most news industry insiders know that U.S. media ownership is independent of the government, but the media’s relationship with the government is not antagonistic. Different news media belong to different financial groups; in the U.S., it can be said that capital and power are inextricably intertwined. In short, communication between the U.S. government and media is extremely solid, though frequently unknown to the public.

The clout of the U.S. forces its reality to be taken as the standard, creating a global definition for freedom of speech. That is also to say: The U.S. regime is best at accepting those views that represent absolute “freedom,” but when there are views that it requires to be watered down, that is also seen as reasonable. The U.S. has just cause to set certain boundaries for freedom of speech, but if other countries set the same boundaries, it is a traitorous, monstrous crime.

As we write this article, we do not wish to defend the domains and issues where Chinese expression of opinion is still not sufficiently open. We believe China still has a great deal of work to do in pushing the authorities to be publicly transparent. Regardless of whether or not the outside world applauds, China’s reforms on free expression of opinion should continue to advance.

However, the Mao Zedong quotation crisis reminds us that the U.S. may provide a reference for China’s reforms, but by no means should the U.S. be emulated as a role model in all respects, even to the extent of worship. The U.S. is not a pillar of freedom of speech in particular. In fact, the country’s high level of development hides its “hundred uglinesses” from view. As a rapidly reviving world civilization, China should not resemble those small nations that grovel at the U.S.’ feet. We need to have the courage and ability to look directly at the U.S., to see its victories clearly and also to discover its inadequacies.

The complexity of China’s society of 1.3 billion is not something covered in American experience. U.S. newspapers may ridicule the president with a few phrases, and it is believed to be “the end of history” — that the whole world should tear down and rebuild according to America’s political blueprint.** Perhaps one reason for this kind of arrogance is that the U.S.’ history is too short and has gone so smoothly, lacking the national political vision of repeated tempering and expansion.

Mao Zedong was a pioneer of the new global geopolitics; he was also the instigator of crucial reforms for the Chinese nation. Americans must eventually jump out of their present narrow-mindedness and learn anew of this Eastern political giant. But this kind of learning will probably belong to the next generation of Americans who, reflecting upon changes in the world, will thus have a wider field of vision.

*Editor’s Note: This quote, accurately translated, could not be verified.
**Editor’s Note: The author appears to be referring to an essay of the same name by Francis Fukuyama.


环球时报:美国对毛泽东禁言 “言论自由”挂了
原标题 [美国对毛泽东禁言 “言论自由”挂了]

  美国教育部下属机构国家教育统计中心网站近来“闯了祸”。该网站3月22日在“每日语录”一栏中引用毛泽东“对自己,‘学而不厌’;对人家,‘诲而不倦’”的名言,国家教育统计中心因此遭到猛烈抨击。有美国参议员出面表示,教育部必须解释为何引用“共产主义者”的话。该中心网站被迫删除毛泽东的这句话,换成了林肯的一个警句。美教育部代理新闻秘书还专门公开表示这次引用“很糟糕”,像是在道歉。

  美国如此“言论自由”的国家,容不下毛泽东的一句语录,显示了美国政治制度在世界多元文化面前的小气。看来不断有人揭露美国的“言论自由”是冒牌货,有他们的道理。

  任何一位美国总统及名人的话,哪怕是与中国军队曾经交战的麦克阿瑟的话如今登上中国媒体,大概都不会有障碍。而反过来毛泽东的话登在美国网站上就引出了风波。我们不想用这个简单的对比引出绝对结论,但这样的对比的确很有意思,相信不持偏见者自有其所悟。

  言论自由在所有国家都有边界,对于美国设有它自己的边界,我们可以理解。但这起“语录风波”让我们看到,美国对在多元环境中保持其社会深层的一致性更加坚决,美国精英们不仅对社会的思想分裂高度警惕,而且对维护“美国共识”出手迅速,毫不犹豫。

  新闻业内人士大多知道,美国媒体在所有权上都独立于政府,但它们同政府并非对立关系。这些媒体分属不同财团,资本同权力的关系在美国可谓千丝万缕。总之美国政府同媒体的沟通非常牢固,它们往往不为普通公众所熟悉。

  美国的强大,使它有力量以美国的现实为标准,塑造全球性“言论自由”的定义。也就是说,美国体制最善于承受的那部分言论应当绝对“自由”,而美国体制要求打折扣的那些部分,又都“很有道理”。或者说,为言论自由设计同样的边界,美国有道义那样做,别的国家一旦做了就是大逆不道。

  写这篇文章时,我们不想为中国言论尚不够开放的一些领域和问题辩护。我们认为中国在推动权力运行公开、透明方面仍有大量工作要做,无论外界鼓不鼓掌,中国围绕开放言论的改革都应不断进行下去。

  然而毛泽东的“语录风波”提醒我们,美国可以向中国改革提供参照,但美国决非我们应处处仿效、甚至膜拜的榜样。美国尤其不是言论自由的图腾。实际上,美国的发达遮了它的“百丑”。中国作为快速复兴的世界超大文明实体,不应像小国那样拜倒在美国脚下,我们需要敢于并有能力平视美国,看清美国的成就,也发现美国的不足。

  中国13亿人大社会的复杂性不是美国经验可以罩得住、对应得了的。美国报纸上能调侃几句总统,就以为“历史终结”了,全世界都应照着美国的政治图纸“拆了重盖”,这种傲慢的原因之一,或许是美国的历史太短,而且一帆风顺,缺少国家政治视野的反复磨练和增容。

  毛泽东是一位世界性新地缘政治的开创者,也是中华民族走向复兴的关键性启动者。美国人终将跳出他们目前的狭隘视角,重识这位东方政治巨人。不过这种认识大概要属于下一代从世界变迁中有所反思、也因此视野更宽的美国人了。
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